Family paintings

Al Payne used to piece together ravaged frames and shreds of cloth to make paintings that looked like disaster sites. He also would paint slightly awkward but sincere portraits of his children skiing or playing in front of the fire. Both strains of his work appear in the Box Gallery's current group show, "Painting." All made between 1953 and 2012 by 11 artists, the paintings that hang throughout the Box's labyrinthine Little Tokyo space are sometimes aggressive, sometimes tender, always at least a little bit messy and perfectly at home with one another. 805 Traction Ave.; through Jan. 26. (213) 625-1747, theboxla.com.
Wednesdays-Saturdays. Starts: Dec. 1. Continues through Jan. 26, 2012